General Iron to sell North Side land site, move out in 2020

Abel Uribe / Chicago Tribune

Trucks full of metal wait to be weighed in Nov. 28, 2017, at the General Iron Industries scrap yard along Clybourn Avenue. The company said July 13, 2018, that it plans to sell the 21.5-acre site, which adjoins the proposed Lincoln Yards development.

Trucks full of metal wait to be weighed in Nov. 28, 2017, at the General Iron Industries scrap yard along Clybourn Avenue. The company said July 13, 2018, that it plans to sell the 21.5-acre site, which adjoins the proposed Lincoln Yards development. (Abel Uribe / Chicago Tribune)

Amid pressure from neighbors, aldermen and federal regulators, General Iron Industries on Friday said it plans to sell its scrap yard along Clybourn Avenue and move to the city’s Southeast Side.

The announcement comes amid a flurry of real estate projects proposed along the Chicago River on the North Side, including developer Sterling Bay’s more than 70-acre Lincoln Yards development on adjacent parcels.

Sterling Bay is scheduled to make its first public presentation next week on the multibillion-dollar Lincoln Yards project, a site that was pitched to Amazon for its second headquarters.

General Iron has hired brokerage Jones Lang LaSalle to seek a buyer for its 21.5-acre site, which the scrap metal recycler said it will vacate in 2020, the company said in a news release. The company did not provide an expected sale price. Based on comparable land deals, it could fetch more than $100 million.

The business, at 1909 N. Clifton Ave., is along the eastern edge of the river, near several other land parcels Sterling Bay has already acquired — most notably, the former A. Finkl & Sons steel plant.

Sterling Bay and other developers are likely to be interested in the site, which despite its gritty history is well-positioned to capitalize on its proximity to Lincoln Yards, Clybourn Corridor retail, the river and multimillion-dollar homes in Lincoln Park. A shutdown of the industrial operation is an important step toward Sterling Bay’s project since it will eliminate a loud and messy neighbor to the project’s planned high-rises.

Ald. Brian Hopkins, whose 2nd Ward includes the scrapyard, has long advocated for shutting down the business because of environmental concerns. In December, the Tribune reported that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency had ordered General Iron to conduct detailed air pollution testing, a step that signaled a potential third federal crackdown on the business since the 1990s.

In a public meeting last month, 43rd Ward Ald. Michele Smith — whose ward is near site — said General Iron would be leaving. She urged the city to find a way to raise $150 million to $200 million to buy properties along the river and build a 24-acre park.

Hopkins, Smith and a third North Side alderman — Scott Waguespack, 32nd — are part of a group that has advocated for the city to create the park.

Mayor Rahm Emanuel has not thrown his support behind the park, instead saying the city intends to stick to a previously outlined plan for the redevelopment of 760 acres of industrial land, one that would include parks and open space totaling more than 60 acres.

“The city is not purchasing the (General Iron) land,” mayoral spokesman Grant Klinzman said in an email.

General Iron said the 110-year-old company will form a partnership with another recycling and scrap metal company, Reserve Management Group. As part of the agreement, General Iron’s operations will transition to a new facility the group will build at Burley Avenue and 116th Street in the East Side neighborhood, according to the release.

That land is part of RMG’s current location at 11600 S. Burley Ave., which includes more than 175 acres along the east side of the Calumet River.

While the new facility is built, operations will continue in the North Side facility until 2020, the company said.

Lincoln Yards was one of five Chicago sites that Amazon visited in March, as the company evaluates 20 contending cities for its planned HQ2. Amazon said it will add up to 50,000 high-paying jobs in the chosen city.

Sterling Bay also has proposed a 20,000-seat stadium for a United Soccer League soccer franchise. The stadium also would be part of Sterling Bay’s plan, with Live Nation Entertainment, to create an entertainment district.